I was enjoying a sunny, blue-skied Highland Spring day this week, buzzing around on my motorbike, catching up on some client and supplier visits and various other work-related chores. As I was riding from one meet to another I decided to pop in to see how a previous public space piece I’d done was weathering. After that inspection I realised there was another piece I hadn’t seen installed so I turned my handlebars in that direction too.

And as I then passed another client’s house, it occurred to me just how many commissions I’ve completed since I moved back to Scotland seven years ago. Other than simple sales of pieces I’ve created ad hoc, my books tell me I’ve taken on and completed about 270 private or public commissions.

In the early days, when I was producing quite a lot of smaller carvings like Celtic clocks and slate wall plaques, a lot of the sold pieces went off into unknown corners of the world. I may never know where they ended up.

But my interest was piqued by the thought of how far and wide my work has travelled. As a keen hillwalker, my membership of a fantastic walking website (http://www.walkhighlands.co.uk) means that I can add little pinpoints on a map of hills I’ve climbed. It spurred me to build a wee map highlighting the places (that I know) my work has been delivered to. I say ‘wee’ map but, thanks to items finding home in the US, Canada and Australia, the map takes up the whole globe.

Nearly all my new contacts find me through the internet and my website which means that anyone in the world can reach me. So it has surprised me a little to discover that the majority of my work does indeed seem to stay in the NE of Scotland. But I think the map is a very interesting snapshot of what’s been keeping me busy these last few years.

I’m currently only about half way through but you can see my map here…